Torture

  • Zhang Demin's Personal Account of the Persecution He Suffered in Qitaihe City, Heilongjiang Province

    On June 24th, 2000, my parents, wife and I went to Tienanmen Square to tell people the truth about Falun Gong. We were arrested and detained. Because a large number of practitioners were arrested that day, we were later transferred to the Shijingshan Stadium and detained there. We were held in the stadium in 40 0 Celsius (104 0F) heat that day, but forbidden to use the toilet or drink water. In the evening we were locked up in a cramped, dark room. A policeman asked me where I was from. I did not answer him. Then they punched and scolded me. The next day, about 20 practitioners were transferred to the Mentougou Detention Centre where we were tortured. The criminals who were detained there beat us as soon as we arrived.
  • The Severe Persecution of Ms. Yang Hualian from Guanghan City, Sichuan Province

    Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Yang Hualian, 56, has been arrested seven times since July 1999 for persisting in her belief in Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. Ms. Yang was sent to a brainwashing centre twice, sent to forced labour twice, and has been sentenced to prison once. During her detentions, Ms. Yang endured savage tortures, such as electric shocks and beatings. The beatings and other abuses led to a lumbar vertebra fracture, severe back injury, high blood pressure, heart attack, and other problems. She became almost blind and unable to take care of herself. Her employers fired her in September 2008, causing her to lose her only source of income.
  • On "International Nurses Day," a Comatose Nurse Is Put on Trial

    On May 12th, "International Nurses Day," nurse and Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Liang Xiulan, who was in a deep coma at the time, was put on trial in Qian'an City, Hebei Province. The court did not even notify Ms. Liang Xiulan's family about her trial. The Qian'an City Detention Centre and the brainwashing centre did not want to be held responsible for Ms. Liang's deteriorating health and did not want to keep her in custody. After the trial, the court personnel drove Ms. Liang's physically disabled husband to the court, then took her and her husband home together.
  • Ms. Kong Qian Has Been Persecuted in a Detention Centre for Over 300 Days

    On July 9th, 2008, Ms. Kong Qian and her mother, Li Xiyun, who had already been homeless for over five years, were arrested by Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officers in their home. A women claiming she needed to check their electric meter deceived them into opening their door. They have now been detained for over 300 days. Long term torture put Ms. Kong Qian's life in danger. She was once taken to a first aid hospital, but CCP officials did not allow her family members or her lawyer to visit her. At the end of March 2009, she was taken to Weifang Detention Centre. After CCP officials had her tortured to the verge of death, her case was then transferred from the Hanting District Procuratorate to the Court.
  • Mr. Wang Xiwen Arrested and Denied Visits from His Lawyer

    Falun Gong practitioner Mr. Wang Xiwen was arrested at his home on March 23rd, 2009. Because he looked at foreign websites, the police intended to sentence him. On April 15th, Mr. Wang's family and the two lawyers that they had hired in Beijing went to the Fengrun Detention Centre to visit Mr. Wang. The detention centre refused to allow them in and told them to talk to the national security team. When his family and lawyers went to the national security team, Chen Ruimin, the team leader, said, "We won't allow you to visit Falun Gong practitioners, since the Falun Gong cases are related to 'state secrets.' The supervisors said they are not allowed to be visited."
  • Falun Gong Practitioner Mr. Liu Fuming from Meishan City, Sichuan Province and his Wife Ms. Shi Huafen Arrested Again

    On April 16th, 2009, more than ten policemen forcibly entered the home of practitioner Mr. Liu Fuming. They confiscated Falun Gong books, and other personal belongings. They also arrested Mr. Liu and his practitioner wife Ms. Shi Huafen. It is said that he and his wife are imprisoned at the Dongpo District Detention Centre. In January 2009, Ms. Shi Huafen was arrested and detained for fifteen days. Now she is imprisoned again. Mr. Liu's elder son studies at middle school and his young son is in kindergarten. His parents are over 70 years old.
  • Practitioners Abused in the Harbin Drug Rehabilitation Centre

    On October 15th, 2007, Mishan City police arrested practitioner Ms. Xin Lilian when she was distributing Falun Gong leaflets exposing the persecution. Police extorted 1000 yuan from her and detained her in the Harbin Drug Rehabilitation Centre. When Ms. Xin was taken to the forced labour camp, she insisted that practising Falun Gong was not a violation of the law and she did not yield to the guards' unreasonable demands. She also requested an unconditional release. When she went on a hunger strike to appeal the brutal torture, Assistant Director Sun Baolian handcuffed her and told the guards to drag her from the 4th floor to the 1st floor for force-feeding, causing deep bruises on Ms. Xin's wrists.
  • Huanggu District Court in Shenyang City Released Four Falun Gong Practitioners at Their Second Trial

    More and more Falun Gong practitioners who were detained before the Beijing Olympics have been brought to trial in many cities throughout China. Numerous lawyers have stood up to defend practitioners' innocence, which has created a shock wave in the Chinese legal community. On February 6th, 2009, Huanggu District Court in Shenyang City, Liaoning Province, convened a second trial for six practitioners. Four of the practitioners were released without further criminal charges being brought against them. They were allowed to return home after ten months of detention. Ms. Wu Yefeng, however, was sentenced to five years in prison, and Mr. Zheng Yi was sentenced to one year in prison.
  • Mr. Li Weizhi from Daqing City, Heilongjiang Province, Went Missing from Beijing 9 Years Ago

    Mr. Li Weizhi, over 50, was a practitioner from Daqing City. In mid December 2000, Mr. Li went to Beijing to appeal on behalf of Falun Gong and to tell the government about the benefits he experienced after practising Falun Gong. He has been missing ever since. His family members took out "Missing" ads for him in both the local and Beijing newspapers in order broaden the search, but they have yet to find him.
  • Exposing the Tongzhou District 610 Office and Domestic Security Team's Persecution of Practitioner Yang Shaocheng

    Prior to the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, the Tongzhou District 610 Office and Domestic Security Team officials tried to sentence practitioner Mr. Yang Shaocheng but failed. Since then, they have been harassing Mr. Yang and ransacked his home. In January 2009, despite Mr. Yang's deteriorating health, they arrested and detained him at the Forced Labour Administration Bureau. The Forced Labour Personnel Administration Bureau is infamous for using brutal torture on practitioners. Since the bureau authorities do not allow families to visit the detainees, Mr. Yang's current situation is unknown.
  • Older Falun Gong Practitioner Sun Jianmin from Tangshan City Persecuted to Death

    Falun Gong practitioner Sun Jianmin was a kind and generous man. He began to practise Falun Gong in 1998. He benefited greatly both physically and mentally, and his family became harmonious once more. When the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) began to persecute Falun Gong, he was tortured at Hehuakeng Forced Labour Camp until he suffered a stroke. His family was harassed for a long time by the local police. He passed away on April 27th, 2009, at the age of 61.
  • Practitioner Ma Zhenzhu in Zibo City, Shandong Province Sentenced to Seven Years in Prison

    Practitioner Ms. Ma Zhenzhu was arrested at home by police in early 2008. The police jailed her for about a year and did not allow her family members to visit her. The family members hired a lawyer and Ms. Ma pleaded not guilty. Unfortunately, the lawyer later succumbed to pressure from the communist party. After accepting the lawyer's fees, he told the family members that although he had managed to see Ms. Ma, he was unable to represent her because she would not give up her belief. In February 2009, Zichuan District Court ran the session without notifying Ms. Ma's family members, and sentenced her to seven years in prison. She is now being held in Jinan Prison in Shandong Province.
  • The Persecution of Falun Gong Practitioners in the Puyang Detention Centre

    Many forms of torture have been used against practitioners in the detention centre. These include: more than ten hours a day of work, being forced to take off their clothes and be drenched with cold water in the winter, and being forced to kneel down in the snow for very long hours. On winter nights many were forced to stand in the cold wind for the whole night and were not allowed to sleep. Guards beat practitioners with wet leather whips, and they were forced to run in the yard wearing heavy shackles until their feet bled. Practitioners were forced to kneel down in a cell and confess their 'mistakes'. One practitioner persisted in practising the exercises and was forced to wear heavy shackles weighing over 25kg for 7 days.
  • State Security Division Personnel Embezzled 30,000 Yuan from Ms. Wang Lanying

    Police stormed into Ms. Wu Licui's home on July 31st, 2008. They took away her Falun Gong books as well as other personal property, including a personal bank deposit passbook and 147,900 yuan in cash. In her bank passbook, there was a deposit of 30,000 yuan from practitioner Ms. Wang Lanying. Ms Wang lent the money to Ms. Wu to buy a house. On September 7th, 2008, police arrested Ms. Wang and took her to the Kaijiang County Detention Centre. In order to embezzle the 30,000-yuan bank deposit, State Security Division agents brutally tortured Ms. Wang into falsely confessing that she never lent any money to Ms. Wu. In this way, the State Security Division was able to confiscate the money.
  • Mr. Liu Jinglu Exposes Torture at Jixi City Police Station: "I heard electric baton noises next door and then screaming from my wife."

    Mr. Liu Jinglu and Ms. Sun Lixiang, husband and wife, are Falun Gong practitioners in Mishan City, Heilongjiang Province. Police from Mishan and Jixi City arrested them, tortured them for a long time and sentenced them. Liu Jinglu heard electric baton noises next door and then screaming from his wife. With both hands cuffed to the chair and feet chained, he tried to stand up and say, 'You cannot treat a woman like this.'" One policeman slapped him in the face. On April 8th, 2008, Sun Lixiang was sent to Harbin Women's Prison. Liu Jinglu is still detained at Jixi First Detention Centre.